HARVESTING iu WEST HARROW

Rekha Mistry was one of the nine contestants in the second series of The Big Allotment Challenge shown in 2015. So what has she been up to since? One hot day in July the KG teamwent to find out

Rekha Mistry

Rekha’s allotment is located on the West Harrow site, the largest site in the borough of Harrow, with 150 10-pole plots (20x120ft) on the ‘large’ site and 48 on the ‘small’ site opposite the station. Despite being in the hustle and bustle of London, the allotment site is so situated you could be mistaken for it being out in the countryside. In the near distance you can see St Mary’s Church at Harrow on the Hill, much frequented by the 19th-century Romantic poet Lord Byron, who attended Harrow School.

Her plot is accessible by a long drive that runs alongside the plots. In Harrow each plot costs £60 a year and this includes access to water taps on site during the growing season. Access to free manure is not possible, but a farmer will deliver at a cost of £60 a load should anyone require it and there is plenty of woodchip available for free.

The allotment is divided into four sections edged with sawn logs that also keep the wood chip from falling into the beds.There is a shed (which Rekha inherited from the previous owner), a small greenhouse (which she bought second-hand) and there are several covers on the plot which have been made by Rekha’s husband.